"This is going to work, it has to work."

"It's not going to work."

"It will, it has to."

"It won't!"

"It will, I know it will!"

"Gidget, stop!" Tiberius snapped angrily. Having been climbing up a ladder, Gidget paused what she was doing and looked back over her shoulder. Down on the floor below, Tiberius hissed, "This isn't going to work, it's pointless. Worse, it's dangerous. You can't possibly take this risk."

"I have to try, I need Max, my Max. We all need him back," Gidget yipped sharply. Grabbing a flask off the shelf, she slid down the ladder. Trotting past her best friend, the Pomeranian walked right up to a huge cauldron. Pouring the liquid contents of the flask into the boiling water within, she stated, "This will fix everything."

"Have you looked outside lately Gidget? There's no fixing this!" Tiberius rasped, following her. Extending his wing towards the closest window, the red tail continued, "The Max you and I knew is long gone, he has abandoned us to rot while he enjoys his newfound spoils."

"He's still there, there's still hope. I can save him, I can save everyone!" Gidget declared, grabbing another flask from a different shelf. Blocking her path back to the cauldron, Tiberius growled, "I did not learn magic with you just to watch you make this whole situation worse for everyone. Face it, Max has changed. You need to move on."

"I appreciate your concerns but I need to do this," Gidget insisted. Setting down the flask nearby, the fluffy white Pomeranian pulled Tiberius into a hug as she murmured, "I can do this, nothing bad is going to happen. I promise." Shuddering, the red tailed hawk pulled himself free from the embrace as he rasped, "We already lost Max and Buddy forever. Don't promise me this will turn out fine, cuz it won't. And I ain't staying to watch." Without another word, he stormed out of the cabin just as Chloe and Daisy entered. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Gidget held her head high as she addressed the other girls, "Are you ready sisters?"

———

A knock on the door caused Max's ears to perk up. Interesting. He wasn't expecting any visitors at this hour. Getting up from his bed, the Jack Russell terrier adjusted the top hat on his head before he opened the door. Standing in the hallway, Snowball mumbled, "Max, we need to talk."

"Not this again," Max snarled, rolling his eyes in annoyance. He attempted to shut the door in Snowball's face but the bunny rabbit was faster. Hopping into the apartment, he turned to face the terrier as he cried, "This needs to stop Tiny Dog, you're ruining everyone's lives."

"I am not. Look Snowball, in nature there is a pecking order. It's not my fault y'all can't climb it," Max growled, shoving his face into Snowball's. The Jack Russell terrier wasn't done yet as he added, "I am on top and will remain on top for eternity. And there's nothing you can do or say that will change that!" The small dog was about to walk away when Snowball dropped the bombshell, "Buddy's dead."

"What?" Max asked, turning around. Wiping his eyes, Snowball was on the verge of tears but he managed to choke out, "Buddy's dead, thanks to you. All of that toxic waste from all the factories you built, he fell into it while he and Mel were attempting to kidnap Liam." Shocked by this news, Max stammered, "Why would they do that?"

"To talk some sense into you, just like everyone else has been trying to do for the past year!" Snowball shouted. His chest heaving from the sudden outburst, the rabbit went on, "Ever since you became famous, you changed. You left all of your real friends behind in the dust while you surrounded yourself with fake ones. We've all been suffering thanks to your actions. Heck, Gidget hasn't been the same."

"Gidget? Is she okay? Is she alright?" Max demanded urgently. Oh how he hoped she was okay. He would never forgive himself if something happened to her. Resting his paw on the canine's shoulder, Snowball answered, "I haven't seen her lately but last I heard she was learning magic and potion making-"

"I'm here baby," Gidget's voice piped up, causing both Max and Snowball to jump with fright. Standing on the windowsill with Chloe and Daisy on either side of her, Gidget lifted the brim of her hat out of her face. Gazing down at Max, the Pomeranian spoke softly, "It's going to be okay Maxie, I'm gonna fix this." She uncapped a flask she was holding. It was very clearly a freshly brewed potion due to the steam rising out of the bottle. Noticing the steam was making heart shapes, Snowball's eyes widened in horror as he yelled, "Max, run! It's a love potion!"

"Don't you dare ruin this for me," Gidget growled, raising one free paw. Snowball was suddenly lifted up into the air by an invisible force. Seeing this, Chloe and Daisy both shared a worrisome look. Meanwhile, Max trembled in fear as Gidget approached him with the love potion in her grasp. A sympathetic look in her sky blue eyes, the Pomeranian reassured her boyfriend, "There's no need to be scared, everything is going to be okay. I'm gonna make sure of that."

"What is that?" Chloe suddenly asked. A moment later, Daisy gasped and yelled, "Everyone move! Get out of the way!" At the same time, something dark and twisted crashed through the window and whacked the flask out of Gidget's paws. Shattered glass now laid on the floor, both from the window and the flask. Gidget let out a cry, her plan had failed. Meanwhile, everyone else was too preoccupied staring at the thing that entered the apartment. At first they had thought it was a tree branch but upon further inspection they discovered it was licorice. That's when a huge figure stepped through the window...